New Delhi, Oct 28 Some of the health harms of climate change grew faster in the decade since the Paris Agreement entered into force (2016-2025) than in the previous decade (2006-2015) as climate action fails to keep pace, according to the 10th Lancet Countdown Report on Health and Climate Change.
The report, which was released on Wednesday, said the annual average heat-related deaths rose by nearly 36 per cent globally after the Paris Agreement was introduced.
“In 2023 alone, heat was linked to a record 710,000 deaths with more than 70 per cent of that toll attributable to human-caused climate change,” it said.
The analysis represents the work of 146 multidisciplinary researchers from more than 100 institutions across more than 30 countries. It tracks 54 indicators of the health impacts of climate change and the health effects of climate action.
The report highlights that cleaner energy, more resilient health systems, more health-protecting legislation and growing scientific evidence have brought real health benefits to local communities since the Paris Agreement, but these gains are still too slow, too insufficient, and too inconsistent to offset the growing risks.
“Rising overall energy demand and slow system change means fossil fuels still supply over 80 per cent of the world’s energy, and climate-heating emissions reached a record high in 2024,” it said.
The report added that despite gains in some countries, fossil-fuel air pollution still kills an estimated 2.8 million people a year worldwide.
Moreover, adaptation funding is falling far short of what’s needed.
According to the report, the health adaptation needs quantified so far by developing countries put the minimum cost at $3.3 billion a year, based on data from only 48 of the 79 countries that have completed these estimates.
However, only around a third of this declared need, $1.1 billion, was committed in 2024.
“This substantial financing gap is reflected in countries’ ability to translate adaptation priorities into action, with finance and human resourcing identified as the top barriers to implementation of Health National Adaptation Plans,” said the report.
(PTI News)
